The Grocery on Beck Avenue

Kay Brackett’s path back to Beck Avenue feels less like a business move and more like a return. Born and raised in Bay County, shaped early by her time working at Miracle Strip Amusement Park and later by years as a restaurateur, Kay brought a lifetime of hospitality experience with her when she opened The Grocery Kitchen & Taproom in the historic Asbell Building. Long before it served cocktails and comfort food, the space was home to the 1928 Serve-You-Well Grocery, a neighborhood market built on service, familiarity, and trust—values that still guide the place today. By reimagining the building as The Grocery, Kay didn’t just open a restaurant; she carried forward a St. Andrews tradition of serving people well, in a place where history, community, and a sense of home still matter.

From Serve-You-Well to The Grocery: A St. Andrews Story

Long before craft cocktails, live music, and a glowing tap list, the building at 1010 Beck Avenue existed for a single, clearly stated purpose.

To serve you well.

In early June of 1928, newspaper notices announced that St. Andrews would soon have a new grocery and meat market. It would operate on the modern cash-and-carry system, handle both staple and fancy groceries, and feature up-to-date Frigidaire refrigeration equipment to ensure fresh meats and crisp vegetables at all times. It would be located in the new Asbell Building, next door to the drug store and in the same block as the Bank of St. Andrews.

The name of the business was Serve-U-Well Grocery and Market.

And it meant exactly what it said.

This was not branding. It was a promise.

A neighborhood store with a philosophy

Serve-U-Well didn’t just sell food. It sold reassurance.

The advertisements were plainspoken and confident: free delivery service, the best groceries, fruits, vegetables, and fresh meats; prices absolutely right on everything you want to eat. Nothing fancy in tone, but quietly progressive in practice. One notice called it a completely modern food store, offering groceries, meats, produce, frozen foods, poultry, and seafood—complete with a phone number locals could dial without hesitation.

The store opened for business on Saturday, June 9, 1928 under the management of W. A. Gainer, described in print as one of St. Andrews’ own young men, someone who had been there practically all his life and needed no introduction.

That detail matters.

Serve-U-Well wasn’t run by outsiders. It belonged to the town. It was staffed by people who understood their customers because they were their customers. The name above the door wasn’t a marketing flourish—it was the standard everyone was expected to meet.

And nearly a century later, that expectation still lingers in the walls.

A life shaped by entertainment and hospitality

Kay Parker Brackett didn’t arrive in St. Andrews chasing a concept. She arrived carrying a lifetime shaped by places where people gather.

Born and raised in Bay County, Kay grew up immersed in entertainment and hospitality. Her father, Bill Parker, was one of the original owners of Miracle Strip Amusement Park, a place that wasn’t just rides and lights, but logistics, food, crowds, timing, and the delicate balance between fun and responsibility.

Kay didn’t just grow up around it—she worked there. Her earliest job was at the amusement park itself, an experience that still lingers with her today, not just as a precious memory but as an early understanding of what it means to take care of people, keep things moving, and make sure the experience matters from start to finish. Long days, controlled chaos, smiling through pressure—those lessons stayed with her.

And they show up later, in quieter ways, in how she builds a place: not simply to feed people, but to host them. Even the menu carries those memories forward, including a sandwich named The Starliner, a nod to the legendary roller coaster at Miracle Strip and a quiet acknowledgment of how deeply that chapter of her life still influences what she creates today.

Over the years, Kay carved out her own place in the local food world, most notably as the owner and chef behind Sisters of the Sea on Panama City Beach. Her cooking reflected the same values she grew up around: generous portions, honest flavors, and food that respected where it came from. Gulf Coast food, done without apology.

She wasn’t building a résumé. She was building trust.

Finding the right place

When Kay became the owner of Taproom on Beck Avenue in 2023, St. Andrews was already quietly doing what it has always done best—evolving without erasing itself.

This wasn’t a district trying to reinvent its image. It was a place rediscovering its footing: independent businesses, walkable streets, and a waterfront that still felt like a working edge instead of a backdrop.

And then there was the building.

As Kay learned more about the space, she discovered its earlier life as Serve-U-Well Grocery—not just the name, but the mindset behind it. A store designed to make shopping easy. A place that emphasized service as much as product. A business run by locals, for locals.

That philosophy felt familiar, because it matched the best version of hospitality: take care of people, and the rest takes care of itself.

From Taproom to The Grocery

The evolution from Taproom to The Grocery Kitchen & Taproom wasn’t a pivot. It was a return.

Kay expanded the kitchen, shifted the focus toward food, and reshaped the space into something that felt rooted rather than trendy. The menu leaned into Southern and Cajun influences—food meant to be shared, remembered, and returned to. The bar remained central, but it no longer stood alone.

And the name did what names are supposed to do: it told the truth.

Calling it The Grocery was a direct acknowledgment of what the building had been and what it had always stood for. The phrase “Serve You Well” wasn’t borrowed as nostalgia. It was adopted as a standard.

The way the original store promised fresh food, fair prices, and service that mattered, Kay built a place that promises the same—just in a different era, with a different menu.

A place with room to gather

One of the easiest ways to understand The Grocery is to notice that it isn’t trying to be one thing.

It unfolds in distinct spaces, each with its own role, all connected by the same sense of welcome.

Inside, a long, polished bar anchors the room beneath exposed brick and wood beams, with taps lined neatly behind it and framed pieces of local history on the walls. It’s the kind of place that feels comfortable and intentional—somewhere you can stop for one drink and end up staying for two conversations.

Nearby, the dining area invites people to settle in, linger over a meal, and talk a little longer than they planned.

And then, out back, the space opens up.

An outdoor bar serves the courtyard, where music fills the evenings and the crowd spreads out under string lights. This space is known as Eva’s Garden, named in honor of Eva, the grandmother of Kim Bottomy, the current owner of the building. Just next door, the boutique Eva & Quinn carries the same family connection, named for Kim Bottomy’s grandparents—another quiet layer of history woven into the block. A Heather Clement’s mural also watches over the garden and adds to the character and visual story of the neighborhood.

It’s not one room trying to be everything. It’s several spaces, each doing its job—together.

Why St. Andrews matters

Ask Kay what keeps her invested here, and she talks less about opportunity and more about familiarity.

About serving people she already knows—not just regulars, but friends who share a history with the place, with the community. There are nights when a table turns into a conversation about years gone by, when a group recognizes one another not from name tags or introductions, but from shared experiences that don’t need much explanation. Those moments matter to her, because they remind her that this isn’t just a business—it’s part of an ongoing story.

And then there’s the bay.

It’s close enough to be felt without trying. The air carries a hint of salt, especially in the evenings, and the breeze comes off the water in a way that’s instantly familiar. Kay says it smells like home. Not as a metaphor, but as a physical reminder of where she is and why this place feels right.

She could have opened a restaurant anywhere. But St. Andrews offers something harder to manufacture: continuity. A sense that people, places, and memories overlap here in ways that still matter.

This is a community that values consistency over flash, and connection over novelty. Businesses aren’t asked to reinvent themselves every few years—they’re asked to show up, serve well, and become part of the neighborhood fabric.

That expectation suits her.

A story larger than one person

This is why this story belongs at the beginning of Stories of St. Andrews.

Because while this is Kay’s story—her roots, her career, her decision to stake her latest claim on Beck Avenue—it’s also the story of a community that has always valued service, familiarity, and trust.

Nearly one hundred years ago, a grocery store opened in the Asbell Building with a simple promise printed in black ink:

We are here to Serve-U-Well.

Some ideas don’t age.

They just wait for the right people to carry them forward.